Black Shoe Diaries
DOMINATE THE STATE
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2026 Opponent Snapshot: Northwestern Wildcats
Head Coach: David BraunNorthwestern Record: 19-19 Quick 2025 Recap The Wildcats had a rough week one with a 23-3 loss to Tulane, but were able to bounce back by winning four of the next five. The sole loss was at #4 Oregon, where some early turnovers killed promising drives and chances for an upset of […]
2026 Opponent Snapshot: Wisconsin Badgers
Head Coach: Luke FickellWisconsin Record: 14-19 (80-46 overall) Quick 2025 Recap The Badgers got off to a 2-0 start with wins over Miami(OH) and Middle Tennessee, but their fortunes would quickly change once the schedule grew more difficult. A 38-14 loss at Alabama started a four game skid, at times appearing Wisconsin would not win […]
MMQB – Big 12 Team in the Big Ten?
There’s no doubt about the fact that the Penn State roster has taken on a new look compared to last season. Besides the usual attrition to graduation and the NFL Draft, the head coaching turnover led to a sizable exodus of players via the transfer portal, larger than usual at any rate. With Matt Campbell […]
Oh, Hello: MA Quarterback Will Wood Commits To Penn State Football
The Skinny Height/Weight: 6-foot-1, 210 poundsHometown/High School: Westwood, MA (Xaverian Brothers )Ranking: ★★★ (88 Rivals — No. 37 QB)Notable Offers: Boston College, West Virginia, Arkansas, Maryland, Syracuse Highlights The Tale Penn State went all in on Peter Bourque after he decommitted from Michigan, but heavy hitters Georgia and Ohio State entered the fray late, and Virginia […]
Spring Sports Update: Men’s Lacrosse Advances
Men’s Lacrosse (10-5) It wasn’t always pretty, but the men’s lacrosse team advanced past Army 10-6 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Hunter Aquino had a hat trick and one assist to inject life into the offense that was relatively quiet for most of the afternoon. Preston Hawkins made 12 saves on 18 […]
2026 Opponent Snapshot: Buffalo Bulls
Conference: Mid-American (MAC) Head Coach: Pete Lembo (3rd season, 14-11 overall) 2025 Record: 5-7 overall, 4-4 MAC 2025 Recap Buffalo opened the 2025 season with their lone game against a Power 4 opponent, as the Bulls gave Minnesota a run for their money, trailing only 13-10 going into the fourth quarter, before the Gophers ultimately […]
Oh, Hello: Egor Shilov Commits to Penn State Hockey
Penn State hockey continued its resurgence on the recruiting trail when Victoriaville Tigres center Egor Shilov committed to Penn State on Thursday: Shilov is one of the top center prospects in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft. Most projections have him going late in the first round. The 18-year old finished seventh among all QMJHL skaters […]
Oh, Hello: Three-Star New Jersey RB Chukwuma Odoh Commits To Penn State
THE SKINNY Height/Weight: 6-foot-0, 215 poundsHometown/High School: Plainfield, NJ (Paramus Catholic)Ranking: ★★★ (87 Rivals — No. 55 running back)Notable Offers: Auburn, Kentucky, Miami, Michigan State, Syracuse, Wisconsin HIGHLIGHTS OUTLOOK Penn State landed South Carolina four-star Aiden Gibson earlier this week, which was apparently just the nodge Odoh needed to make the call for the Nittany […]
Penn State Basketball Adds New Recruit, Assistant Coach, and Preseason Tournament
It’s been a busy week as far as basketball news is concerned: Mike Rhoades filled out his roster with yet another international recruit, filled an assistant coaching vacancy, and got some scheduling news for the 2026-2027 season. 6’10” Serbian forward Aleksandar Zecevic became the latest addition to the roster. Zecevic has been playing professionally in […]
2026 Opponent Snapshot: Temple Owls
Conference: American Conference Head Coach: K.C. KeelerTemple Record: 5-7 Quick 2025 Recap Temple had its most successful post-COVID season in 2025, scraping together five wins under first-year head coach K.C. Keeler. The Owls had a bit of a bad schedule draw last year as they faced off with three ranked teams in No. 13 Oklahoma, No. 18 […]
Oh, Hello: Charlie Michaud Commits to Penn State Hockey
Entering this week, Penn State hockey had replaced two of its three outgoing defensemen but still needed one more depth piece to round out the blue line. The Nittany Lions got their wish with a commitment from Charlie Michaud on Tuesday: Michaud is transferring in from Miami (OH), where he played just six games in […]
Oh, Hello: South Carolina Running Back Aiden Gibson Commits To Penn State Football
The Skinny Height/Weight: 6-foot-1, 215 poundsHometown/High School: Woodruff, SC (Woodruff)Ranking: ★★★★ (90.31 Rivals Industry, .9028 247 composite)Notable Offers: Rutgers, North Carolina, South Carolina, Louisville Highlights Outlook With Kemon Spell off to Georgia, Penn State needed to look elsewhere to fill their needs at running back. The Lions had their sights set on three main targets, […]
Charlie Cerrato Signs ELC With Carolina Hurricanes
Former Penn State hockey center Charlie Cerrato inked a three-year entry-level contract (ELC) with the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday: The contract carries an average annual value and cap hit of $915,000- a solid amount for a rookie deal. After leaving Penn State following the Nittany Lions’ exit from the NCAA Tournament, Cerrato joined the Chicago […]
2026 Opponent Snapshot: Marshall Thundering Herd
Conference: Sun Belt Head Coach: Tony GibsonMarshall Record: 5-7 Quick 2025 Recap Marshall could not maintain the momentum from a 10-win season in 2024 that saw them take home the Sun Belt Conference Championship. The season started with a 45-7 pounding by Georgia. While this may have been expected, the following week saw them drop […]
MMQB – First Season Hopes
Matt Campbell will debut his first season as Penn State’s head coach on September 5th when the Marshall Thundering Herd come to visit Beaver Stadium. From there, the team will have 11 additional chances to go out, compete, and hopefully win a few games. The schedule has been described as not overly difficult, which is […]
Oh, Hello: Marco Mignosa Commits to Penn State Hockey
Penn State hockey gained a commitment from forward Marco Mignosa on Friday: Mignosa was drafted in the seventh round of the 2025 NHL Draft by the Tampa Bay Lightning. He played for the Soo Greyhounds of the OHL for five seasons, rolling up 116 goals and 173 assists in 303 career games. His 89 points […]
Oh, Hello: Filipino PG Andy Gemao Commits to Penn State
Penn State men’s basketball is once again going global with its recruiting, but this time they’re fishing beyond Europe, as they have snagged a commitment from Filipino point guard Andy Gemao. The 6’1” Gemao just finished a season of playing high school ball at Toronto’s Royal Crown Prep and has also played for the Philippines’ […]
Kickoff Times Announced for Penn State Match-Ups with Wisconsin and Northwestern
Penn State has the kickoff times set for its first two conference games of the 2026 season. The Nittany Lions will meet Wisconsin to open Big Ten play at 3:30 p.m., Saturday, September 26. Penn State currently owns a six-game win streak over the Badgers, dating back to 2012. Wisconsin will be looking to bounce […]
Spring Sports Update: Lacrosse Teams Gear Up For Playoffs
Men’s Lacrosse (9-5) Following a resounding 16-8 win over Johns Hopkins in the Big Ten Championship, the men’s lacrosse team enters the NCAA Tournament on a heater. The Nittany Lions won their first conference tournament title since 2019 and earned the No. 8 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament. Penn State will face Army in […]
Oh, Hello: Three-Star OT David Tarawallie Commits to Penn State
The Skinny Height/Weight: 6-foot-5.5, 260 poundsHometown/High School: Painesville, Ohio (Riverside H.S.)Ranking: ★★★ (87 rating on Rivals, No. 65 OT) Notable Offers: Cincinnati, Louisville, Michigan State, Nebraska, Tennessee, Virginia Tech Highlights Outlook Matt Campbell and staff utilized their Ohio/midwestern ties to land the Northeast Ohio kid. Tarawallie was a little known prospect just a few months […]
Happy Valley Rewind: Wisconsin 2012
We’re back with another episode of Happy Valley Rewind, as this time we take a look back at the culmination of the 2012 season when Penn State knocked off the Wisconsin Badgers on Senior Day. Full game is here.
MMQB – Blue-White Insights
The Blue-White Practice – not Game – was held on Saturday, April 25th, which means I’d normally discuss it the following Monday, but there was also this thing called the NFL Draft going on that same weekend. Which means that my much-anticipated review of the Blue-White Game had to be postponed for a week – […]
Spring Sports Update: Men’s Lacrosse Advances to Big Ten Final
Men’s Lacrosse (8-5) The men’s lacrosse team beat Maryland 8-6 on Thursday to advance to the Big Ten championship game. A hat trick by Hunter Aquino provided the winning margin in a mostly tight-checking defensive game. Preston Hawkins made eight saves and forced one turnover in one of his best performances of the season. At […]
Oh, Hello: Three-Star Tennessee WR Jamir Dean Commits To Penn State
THE SKINNY Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 175 poundsHometown/High School: Alcoa, TN (Alcoa H.S.)Ranking: ★★★ (89 Rivals — No. 45 wide receiver)Notable Offers: Arkansas, Duke, Louisville, Vanderbilt, Virginia Tech, Wisconsin HIGHLIGHTS OUTLOOK On March 27th, Penn State had zero commitments and there was a semi-freakout of “Can Matt Campbell recruit on a high level?” Well, just 30 some […]
Oh, Hello: Penn State Lands Four-Star Top 10 DT Stanley Montgomery
THE SKINNY Height/Weight: 6-foot-3, 300 poundsHometown/High School: Philadelphia, PA (Archbishop Ryan)Ranking: ★★★★ (92 Rivals — No. 104 overall, No. 10 defensive tackle)Notable Offers: Duke, Kentucky, Missouri, Texas A&M, Virginia, Wisconsin HIGHLIGHTS OUTLOOK Borderline top 100 kid according to Rivals, 247Sports has him No. 65 overall, and a top 10 defensive tackle on both sites, this […]
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